Cincinnati Museum Center

The Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) is a diverse, robust and complex organization providing valuable services and resources to the greater Cincinnati community. CMC was founded as the shared home of the Museum of Natural History and Science, Cincinnati Historical Society and the Omnimax theatre and three years later welcomed the Cinergy Children’s Museum as part of the mix of museum and attraction experiences. Interactive, educational and public programs for visitors of all ages, an ongoing program of important traveling and changing exhibitions, exciting festivals and public events, and food and retail services add to the range of experiences available to visitors.

In 2005, Lord Cultural Resources was invited to develop the Exhibition Master Plan, which would provide the framework for new and redeveloped exhibits. The Plan addressed thematic, circulation and facility use issues. The Board initiated a Renovation Plan in 2006 for the historic Union Terminal and concurrently engaged Lord Cultural Resources to develop a Strategic Plan that would integrate the Exhibition Plan and Renovation Plan and address other institutional development issues. The Board recognized the importance of a clear Vision and Mission to guide decision making and inspire on-going community support, and wanted to know that future decisions – such as new exhibitions – would be strategic and would have an impact on CMC by engaging and exciting the community, county and civic leadership, and corporate and individual donors with a clear sense of CMC’s direction and value to the community.